The Benue State Government has denied any involvement in the reported obstruction of the convoy of the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, Peter Obi, during his visit to the state on Tuesday.
The government said it was unaware of Obi’s visit and therefore could not be linked to the incident involving youths who reportedly blocked his convoy.
The Chief Press Secretary to Governor Hyacinth Alia, Kula Tersoo, disclosed this in a telephone interview on Tuesday, stressing that the state government would have been informed if security agencies were involved in stopping Obi.
“We are not aware of his coming to the state, and if it were to be security agents that stopped him, it would have been easy for us to find out what happened.
“As presidential candidate of a party and former governor he is a property of federal government and ought to have been given security, where are those security agents around him and if he is going to any state, the security of the host state should know so as to provide security for him.”
Tersoo also rejected suggestions that youths could have acted on behalf of the state government, insisting that the administration did not support the use of thugs.
“We were surprised that youth would stop someone, youth can not do anything on behalf of government. Our government doesn’t patronize thugs and in any case Obi is not a threat to the governor, we are not aware that Obi is coming to Benue. Am hearing it from you,” he said.
Obi was reportedly on his way to Yelewata to meet families of victims of the June 2025 massacre when his convoy was stopped by youths at Gyado Villa along Gboko Road.
He was later said to have returned to Abuja.
However, the NDC governorship candidate in Benue State, Prof. Terhemba Shija, gave a different account, saying Obi’s visit had been officially communicated to security agencies in the state.
Shija said Obi was heading to Yelewata to commiserate with families affected by the 2025 killings and claimed that the police and Department of State Services had been informed ahead of the visit.
He said, “Is Obi not a presidential candidate, INEC has lifted ban on campaign and we duly informed police and DSS about his visit to the state they deployed police and DSS to be with us.
When asked whether the state government had also been informed, Shija argued that the lifting of the campaign ban by the Independent National Electoral Commission meant political candidates could move around for legitimate activities.
“But government is aware that INEC has lifted ban on campaign, do we need to take permission from candidate?” Professor Shija asked.
The NDC governorship candidate described the incident as “a demonstration of fear, a clear show that Obi is the man to watch”, adding, “he has come just to see families of victims of Yelewata why should somebody stopped a legitimate candidate after he has officially given notice to CP and DSS?”
Meanwhile, the Benue State Police Command confirmed that it was aware of Obi’s visit and that its personnel provided security for his movement.
In a brief statement issued on Tuesday, the command’s spokesperson, DSP Peter Aondongu, said the circumstances surrounding the blockade remained under investigation.
“We can confirm that the Police are aware of the incident involving Peter Obi’s movement to Yelwata. Police operatives provided security for the movement.
“The reason the convoy was blocked by some youths is still unknown. We are monitoring the situation and investigating the circumstances surrounding the incident.
“Further updates will be provided accordingly,” the PPRO said.
